Title: My Name is Khan

Starring: Shahrukh Khan, Kajol

Language: Hindi

The increasing trend among Hollywood production companies to make forays into Bollywood, plus the success of Slumdog millionaire has resulted in Indian film directors attempting themes with universal and global appeal.  While this is a welcome development, it is a lot harder to translate this intent into meaningful cinema without forgoing the traditional  formula for success in Bollywood. Trying to please a very broad audience is a tall order. Karan Johar attempts to do precisely that in this film and (IMHO) has fallen rather short.

Inspired by shades of Forrest Gump, set against a backdrop of a post 9-11 world, terrorism and racial profiling, an underlying call for universal peace and harmony, a good measure of Islam and its interpretations, thrown in with the Asperger syndrome, a Katrina-like storm(!!) for a climax, and of course a highly improbable love story — this in short is what Karan Jahar’s “My Name is Khan” is all about.  If this is not enough of a heady mix, the director has the additional burden of transforming Shahrukh Khan’s traditional on-screen image of a romantic, masala star to one playing a very serious role. Besides, the pressure to constantly portray a larger than life image for a big star weakens the script even further. It is impossible to remain true to life and realistic, or even somewhat believable, while trying to thrust super human abilities on the film’s hero. For instance, it is not enough that the hero suffers from the Aspeger syndrome, he still has to indulge in “hero-giri” to meet the Bollywood formula.

The plot is full of holes and takes liberties that are hard to swallow even by any stretch of imagination.  As a man seriously suffering from Asperger syndrome he wanders around the streets of San Francisco selling herbal products despite being stranded in front of cable cars and being deeply disturbed by loud sounds (and the color yellow among other things), he manages to travel all around the US by himself despite his severe disabilities and turns up to save the poor from storms and other forms of misery, he shares his sorrow in Hindi to a congregation of Afrian-Americans in Georgia(!!), manages to fall in love and get married, he reforms youngsters with terrorist tendencies, attempts to turn in suspected terrorists to the authorities, and is instrumental in generating a mass movement of goodwill and caring among the average citizens of the US!

With 9-11 almost 10 years old, this film might have been better suited to the times had it been released five years sooner. In order to maintain this context, the film constantly swerves back and forth between the past and present. This is both annoying and confusing.  The traditional song and dance has been abandoned in favor of a couple of background songs.  The scenes involving the death of the boy and the surrounding drama are well handled and probably the best part of the film.

While I am no expert on the Asperger syndrome, one can’t help but draw comparisons to ailment afflicted roles played by Leonardo DiCaprio in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Dustin Hoffman in Rainman, Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump, or  for that matter, Amitabh Bachhan in Black. Maybe it’s my lack of knowledge about Asperger syndrome, or my over exposure to Shahrukh and his stereotypyical portrayals in the past, but his performance pales in comparison to these. Kajol handles her role as the divorced single Mom with ease. The rest of the supporting cast have little to do except the boy who acted as Kajol’s son.  His performance if you disregard his Indian accent (despite the character being born and raised in the US) was noteworthy.

This film is not a romantic film, it’s certainly not a comedy, it is not a serious film about terrorism or the Asperger syndrome, it is not a musical, it is not an action film — it is essentially a melodramatic concoction of all of these in ample measure. Herein lies both the conventional USP (unique selling proposition) of the film and its greatest failing.

Having said all of this, I still won’t be surprised if this film is a runaway hit and Shahrukh Khan walks away with several best actor awards because this film is a Bollywood masala weaved into a smorgasbord of contemporary topics, with potential mass appeal despite doing real justice to none of the issues mentioned earlier.

Title: 3 Idiots

Starring: Aamir Khan, Madhavan, Kareena Kapoor

Language: Hindi

This a story of three friends who meet at an Engineering college. Aamir Khan, Madhavan and Sharman Joshi play the three friends while Kareena Kapoor as the heroine and Boman Irani as the heroine’s Dad and college Principal comprise the rest of key star cast.

The Director of the film, Raju Hirani (of Munnabhai fame) clearly has a great flair for comedy and always manages to blend “messages” into his films. There is plenty to laugh right through the film plus there is a lot of criticism of the education system in India and associated advice/messages for all involved, all cleverly blended into the script.  Its almost as if the movie makers  set out to see the comic side of almost every scene in the film. The scenes where the friends meet each others families, the NRI student (a slightly exaggerated caricature) and his speech (where chamatkar turns into balatkar), the Principal and his idiosyncrasies  form some of the many outrageously funny sequences.  The quality of the humor  is a of a better standard than that  of the Munnabhai films simply because the theme of this story is one which most people (especially  those who have lived in hostel) can relate to.  So the comedy comes as across as that much more believable. As in most Bollywood films there is plenty of exaggeration in this film too.  Nevertheless, this is a thoroughly enjoyable film.

Surprisingly, Aamir Khan’s age in real life does not comes across as a drawback for the film. Both the star and the Director deserve credit for this. The tight script, the make up and the quality of the acting combined together,  easily make up for this potential shortcoming. You go in thinking “Couldn’t they find someone younger to play a college student?’ but once you watch the film you realize that this was never an issue. Kareena Kapoor handles her role with ease while Boman Irani manages to deliver without going overboard like he often does.  Aamir Khan as the lead in the film puts in another distinctly different, yet impressive performance. His ability to transition between his various roles (Taare Zameen par, Ghajini, 3 Idiots) is commendable. Besides, he deserves credit for selecting his roles and films so carefully so as to avoid stereotyping and yet being able to consistently churn out mega hits.

The Controversy Regarding the Credits

The film makers have given credit to Chetan Bhagat the author of the book Five Point Someone in the credits stating that it was “based on the book by Chetan Bhagat”.  There was some controversy surrounding this issue instigated by the author himself.  But my personal (having read the book) view is that the film makers have been inspired by the book but chose to modify the story significantly. In fact, this film is a perfect example of the stark difference between writing a book and making an equivalent  Bollywood film. Some of the sequences in the film are so ridiculous yet so funny. This is something that is almost impossible to capture in a book. The dialogues form a very critical part of Bollywood films especially when comedy is involved (Kareena’s dialogues about Gujju dishes comes to mind among others!). There can be no dispute whatsoever that the film makers deserve all the credit for this and there is nothing even remotely similar in the book.

Indian films with big stars often indulge in creating the persona of a larger than life image.  Aamir Khan’s character undeniably shoulders this responsibility. He is the smartest student, never worried about grades, knows all the answers, tops the class, cracks the jokes, is eternally helpful, has a heart of gold, gets into trouble, gets the girl, makes you laugh and cry, earns your sympathy, appreciation, admiration, love….that’s traditional Indian cinema for you.  A conventional book of fiction seldom indulges in this  kind of “hero-giri” and Chetan Bhagat’s book is no different.

Next, there is the question of  the “message” in the film.  Sending a message or two through his films seems to be a Raju Hirani trademark (and lately Aamir Khan’s too as in Taare Zameen Par). The film is replete with direct criticism of the Indian educational system. I don’t recall any of this in the book. I don’t mean to say that there are no similarities with the book, but I think Chetan Bhagat’s “kicking and screaming” is without too much merit. The film in its totality is very different from the book and the film makers (IMHO) have given him more than adequate credit.

Film: Invictus (”unconquered”) For more info. on the title click here.

Director: Clint Eastwood

Starring: Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon

This film is based on the book “Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Changed a Nation” and captures the rise of Nelson Mandela as President of South Africa post his release from prison and his role in the success of the South African Rugby team in the 1995 World Cup.  Morgan Freeman plays the role of Nelson Mandela, while Matt Damon plays the role of the captain of the South African rugby team, Francois Pienaar.

The movie brings to light happenings during the Mandela Presidency that are fairly unknown in most of the world. The insights into the Nelson Mandela Presidency, his heart felt desires in unifying blacks and whites post-apartheid, his use of rugby as a means to unify the people, his security team comprised of both blacks and whites, his simplicity and affable nature etc.  are all cleverly blended into the script without appearing forced. Morgan Freeman as Mandela is brilliant. Matt Damon has a relatively secondary role in the film and was clearly under utilized. Director Clint Eastwood tries to bring together politics and sports in the film and somehow the focus on Mandela seems to have come at the expense of sports in the film.

Mandela’s conscious attempt in trying to unite the country through rugby is brought out very well at various stages in the film. On the other hand, the transformation in Francios Penaar’s family could have been better handled to make it more believable. His girl friend’s role in the film for instance was needless and had nothing to contribute. Likewise, the change in the mindset of the rest of rugby team did not receive enough attention and did not seem believable either. Nevertheless, the film is an enjoyable watch but its nothing to rave about.  In fact, it pales in comparison to Clint Eastwood’s previous film, Changeling.

p.s:  Since this is a film on Rugby I can’t help but think about “Chak de India” (hockey) and “Lagaan” (cricket). The context of the these films are very different. But the sections of these respective films that focus on sports are so much better handled in the Hindi films.

Language: Tamil (also released in Telugu)

Starring: Kamal Haasan, Mohanlal, Lakshmi

This film is the Tamil re-make of the successful Hindi film, A Wednesday. The Tamil version sticks to the Hindi version for the most part except for a few twists to suit the south Indian context (CM sounding like Kalaignar, for instance, Lakshmi as the chief secretary, Mohanlal as the malayali cop etc.). Like the original, this film is an engaging thriller that keeps you guessing to the very end. Its a film based on the topic of terrorism, though there is very little violence per se. The film revolves around a terrorist threat to the city. The terrorist calls the chief of police and informs him of bombs he has placed across the city and communicates his demands. The entire length of the film revolves around the frequent communication between the two. The twist at the end adds a nice touch.

Mohanlal as the lead cop handles his role well as always. His Tamil with a strong malayali accent is fun listening to especially if you know both languages. Kamal Hassan handles his role with his usual aplomb. As always the most annoying part of his acting is his frequent use of English (as he does in most films). I could still live with his English but what I find most irritating is his American (like) accent when he speaks English. In this film he is supposed to be a regular guy and yet he couldn’t resist the American accent! (Oh, please…).

There is no question that this film is very different from anything Bollywood (or Kollywood) has turned out in recent times. It is definitely worth a watch, either in Hindi or in Tamil.

Language: Malayalam (dubbed in other languages Tamil, Telugu)

Starring: Mamooty, Sarath Kumar, Manoj K. Jayan, Padmapriya

Saw a Malayalam film in the theater after a long time. Pazhassi Raja, a magnum opus by Kerala standards, is a historical film and the costliest Malayalam film ever.  The movie is based on a King named Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja who ruled in the northern part of Kerala in 17th century prior to most well known struggles against the British rule in India.

Mamooty handles the lead role as Pazhassi Raja with ease. The supporting start cast is given plenty of screen time unlike a typical big star dominated film. Sarath Kumar, Manoj K. Jayan, and Padmapriya all perform brilliantly. Sarath Kumar in particular, stood out in his role as the Kings’s right hand man.

The sets, locales and photography were impressive.  There is plenty of violence as one would expect and there is a good measure of martial arts and clever camera work to add to the special effects. The songs were a disappointment (thankfully there were only a couple) especially considering that the same team of movie makers had terrific songs in their previous film(Vadakan Veera Katha) several years back. Despite being a fairly long film the makers have managed to keep the audience engaged right through. If you are in the mood for a period film this one is worth watching.

Thanks to this film, I now know of a one more King and his struggles against the British.

Title: Luck by Chance

Starring: Farhan Akthar, Konkana Sen Sharma, Isha Shravani (who is who of Bollywood play guest roles)

Language: Hindi

Watched another Hindi film. Once again, I opted for something out of the mainstream. This is a film about the Hindi film industry itself much like earlier films on similar topic, Page 3 and Fashion. The storyline highlights the role luck plays in success while exposing the workings of the industry as whole — gossip, affairs, financing, double standards, distrust, insecurity, false promises, casting couch, love, betrayal, you name it.

The film is very well made. The deubutant director (Zoya Akhtar, whose brother Farhan Akthar plays the lead role) does a fine job of bringing out the best in all the characters. The Akthar siblings appear to have worked their Bollywood connections to the maximum by parading a bevy of Bollywood stars essaying brief cameos (Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Abhishek Bacchan, John Abraham, Akshay Kumar, Boman Irani, Juhi Chawla etc.) to more extended roles (Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Hrithik Roshan, Sanjay Kapoor) all through the film. The Director deserves credit for weaving these appearance very astutely into the story-line. None of these appearances appear forced and blend extremely well with the story of the film.

Konkana Sen Sharma and Farhan Akthar play the roles of aspiring actors in Mumbai. While she struggles to get a big break she essays small insignificant roles over a three year period. Meanwhile, Farhan’s character moves to Mumbai from Delhi in search of break in the fim industry. The two meet through common friends (who are also tied to the film industry) and a develop and friendship which later develops into a romance. The Director does a fine job of not overdoing this part and keeping it “suttle”. By sheer circumstance (or luck!), Farhan’s character gets a break as a lead role in a film after Hrithik Roshan backs out mid-way through the film. The series of coincidences that pitchfork Farhan’s character to land the lead role is extremely well captured highlighting the importance of “time and place” when it comes to success. Dimple plays the role of an obsessive former movie star desperately seeking a big break for her daughter (played by Isha Shravani). Rishi Kapoor plays the film’s producer (never sen him in a role like this before!) and Sanjay Kapoor its Director.

The biggest drawback of the film is probably its title.  Until you watch the film the title makes little sense whatsoever. It is ironical that Javed Akthar’s kids had to come up with a (poorly worded)  all English title for a Hindi film! Another drawback of the film is its hero – Farhan Akthar.  While his acting is excellent, he doesn’t exactly fit the role of aspiring Hindi film hero (his muscles not withstanding!) who goes on to becomes immensely popular! Given the negative shades of the role it was probably difficult to find any of the mainstream stars to accept the role. On the other hand, it might have been a perfect fit for a good-looking,  new or up and coming star (a la SRK in Baazigar, Darr).

This film is probably not a commercial success because its not a mainstream “masala”. Nevertheless, the Director is certainly very talented as is evident in the quality of the overall film –film making, editing, the dialogues, the camera work, the background score, acting, etc. If you are in the mood for something other than the traditional Bollywood masala, this film is definitely a good choice.

Title:  Sorry Bhai!

Starring:  Shabana Azmi, Boman Irani, Sanjay Suri, Sharman Joshi and Chitrangada Singh

After a long break I watched a Hindi film.  It turned out to be a film that I had never heard about and one with relatively unknown stars. I was looking for a change from the conventional “boiler plate bollywood”.

Firstly, the pros -A fairly simple yet bold theme, just a handful of actors, and shot completely in Mauritius so there is plenty of scenic beauty to enjoy.  The story revolves around a family with two brothers, where the younger sibling and his brother’s fiancee fall in love.  Shabana and Bomman play the parents, while Sanjay and Sharman play the brothers.

The end, which was cleverly folded into the beginning of the film to introduce the suspense element in the plot, completely contradicts the supposed progressive story-line. It was a case of four big unconventional, progressive steps forward drowned out by eight super-traditional steps backward!

It is hard to get into the details without revealing the plot.  The end of the film was a huge let down. The film is edited and presented well but the end is bizarre and destroys all its positives. In a blatant attempt, to satisfy the conservative and the progressive audiences at the same time, the film has ended up achieving  neither.

The acting is overall very good except for Chitrangada Singh who appears to struggle at times to appear believable. The songs sounded trendy but I don’t recall any being instantly catchy.

Title: Subramaniapuram

Language: Tamil

Starring: Mostly newcomers

Director: Sasi Kumar

After quite a long time I watched a Tamil film on a flight. I knew nothing about this film. In fact, I had never heard of it. It turned out to be a pleasant surprise.  I don’t recall seeing any of the actors before either.

The film begins dramatically with a prisoner being released and stabbed as he walks out. The rest of the film is mostly in flashback, set in the early 80s in Madurai in Tamil Nadu. The plot revolves around four friends growing up in a small town. Their friendship and camaraderie is captured effectively throughout the film and this helps add to the twists in the plot. They remain unemployed and serve as sidekicks to a local aspiring politician. They soon get caught up in web of political rivalry, loyalty, betrayal and murder. The film depicts how unscrupulous politicians take advantage of unemployed youth in the countryside to accomplish their personal ambitions. Some romance is thrown in but in small measure and that makes it quite believable. There is a good bit of suspense that ties into the first scene.

The film is fast paced and engaging. The camera work is impressive and captures the small town feel sufficiently. The acting is adequate and the casting seems appropriate given that the actors are mostly new comers. The music director, James Vasanthan (also a new comer) deserves special mention for the song “kangal irrandal” — an extremely catchy tune.

Overall, an excellent debut film by Director Sasi Kumar.

Title: Slumdog Millionaire

Starring: Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor, Irfan Khan, Freida Pinto

Director: Danny Boyle

I found Vikas Swarup’s  book Q&A to be extremely creative and entertaining.  The film Slumdog Millionaire  builds on the main theme of the book, but it veers off to accommodate hordes of “masala” like car chases, sentimental scenes, stunt sequences, gun shots, the typical Bollywood hero and heroine exchanging looks (with romantic music playing in the background) while a train rushes between them, etc. You get the idea.

The script is full of holes and ranges from extreme exaggeration (the jump through feces to pick up Amitabh Bachhan’s autograph!) to utterly senseless (the host of the quiz show played by Anil Kapoor ridiculing the participant instead of putting him at ease).  In short, the film does no justice to the book whatsoever, but was instead focused entirely on its box office elements.

Dev Patel, the lead actor’s British accent, and the policeman, slum dwellers and menacing goons speaking in English all appear completely out of place for a film set in Mumbai. Freida Pinto (the film’s female lead)  might have a good Bollywood career ahead of her, provided she is open to taking some Hindi lessons. The film is essentially like a typical fast-paced Bollywood film  with plenty of the conventional mix of action, drama, melodrama, love and suspense, but all in English. In other words, it is an “out and out masala.” Nevertheless, it is certainly watchable. Could it have been made more authentic and hence more watchable? Sure, but it might not have hit the mainstream like it seems to have done now.

The commercial success of the film in the US and across the world has some very interesting implications for the film business in general. Western filmmakers have been trying hard to enter Bollywood of late (Sony with Saawariya, Disney with Roadside Romeo, Warner Brothers with Chandni Chowk to China, to name a few) but with little success to date. At the same time, Bollywood film makers have been trying to make films targeted at the NRI audience (Karan Johar’s endless string of eye-candies set in the US, Yash Chopra’s feel goodies etc.). Making Bollywood films with an eye on Hollywood has so far been considered too much of a stretch. The success of Slumdog Millionaire changes this mindset on its head. It opens up a thus far unexplored commercial avenue for Bollywood – the true desi masala starring the likes of Shahrukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Kamalhasan, Rajnikanth, Aishwarya Rai, Deepika Padukone etc., made in English by the likes of Mani Ratnam, Shankar, Ashutosh Gawarikar, and so on, but targeted at the western audience (as opposed to just the NRI crowd). Slumdog Millionaire’s success proves that the world universally craves and embraces masala themes. If it is packaged right, a commercial home run is there for the asking, not to mention Golden Globes and possibly Oscars.

The thought of Rajnikanth appearing on screen and American men and women screaming, whistling and throwing dollars and cents at the screen, or the day when Shah Rukh Khan hits the talk show circuit in the US prior to the release of his next bilingual (Hindi and English) blockbuster is no longer far fetched. This will be the true globalization of commercial cinema. The makers of Chak de India and Swades (two movies that come to mind right away) should surely consider releasing their films in English, minus any song and dance…well maybe not, if you consider the commercial success of Mama Mia. Rajnikanth’s next film Endhiran, originally titled Robot, also starring Aishwarya Rai, in the tactful hands of commercial super director Shankar would be another candidate to give an English release a shot.

Bollywood owes director Danny Boyle for setting the stage for Bollywood’s foray into Hollywood. With this film, he has paved the way for bridging the gap between Hollywood and Bollywood. It is up to Bollywood to take the cues and build on it.

Title: Outsourced

Starring: Josh Hamilton, Ayesha Dharker

This is one of the many movies based on the topic of outsourcing. In hindsight it would perhaps have been more timely to release this film now (in the midst of the meltdown) rather than in 2006. An American firm dealing with novelty products shuts down a department and starts an operation in India. One of the Managers is shipped out to India to train the staff there. 

There are plenty of funny scenes as the American Manager gets exposure to India both at the workplace and outside. A needless romance is thrown into the film but completely lacks any conviction. It is very obvious that this is a rather low budget film. The overall script is weak and despite the fairly realistic portrayal of India, the film fails to sustain its momentum. Josh Hamilton and Ayesha Dharker as the lead pair deliver decent performances. 

 If you haven’t seen any film on the topic of outsourcing, then this might be worth a few laughs.